FINAL - Gunter 28 Woodville 0
ARLINGTON, TX — The Gunter Tigers (13-2) took on the Woodville Eagles (13-2) on Thursday, December 19, to see who would take home the 3A Division II Title. Gunter, the two-time defending champs, defeated the Wall Hawks 42-32 last week to advance to their 4th straight title game. Meanwhile, Woodville made their first state championship appearance on Thursday.
1st Quarter
Gunter won the toss and deferred to the 2nd half. Woodville began their first drive on the Eagles 12-yard line. After gaining a single first down, the Eagles punted the ball away in part to a strong showing early from the Tigers' defense. Gunter took over at the Tigers 16-yard line.
The Tigers' first drive proved to be no better than Woodvilles. After a quick three-and-out, Gunter punted the ball away. Woodville took over at the midfield with 8:16 remaining in the 1st quarter.
The defensive battle continued as Gunter's defense forced another three-and-out. Woodville punted the football, and Gunter took over at the Tigers' 16-yard line.
Gunter finally kickstarted their offense with two straight first downs. The Tigers made it past their 40-yard line for the first time in the contest. However, A sack on third down dropped Gunter back to the 37-yard line, and the Tigers had to punt. Woodville took over at their 33-yard line with 3:36 remaining in the 1st quarter.
Five possessions, five punts. Gunter forces another three-and-out. Woodville punted the ball to the Tigers' 35-yard line where Gunter will look to break the dead lock.
This game looks to be a field position battle early.
Woodville continued to match Gunter's intensity on defense—another three-and-out and another punt from the Tigers. The Eagles took over at Woodville's 17-yard line with 25 seconds left in the 1st.
2nd Quarter
Following another Woodville punt, Gunter finally saw some life thanks to a punt return from Easton Overman. Overman fielded the punt and returned the football 34 yards to the Woodville 29-yard line.
Three plays later, Preston Tarpley hit Cole Harpole over the middle for an 18-yard touchdown. The Tigers finally broke the deadlock with 10:06 remaining in the 2nd quarter, 7-0.
Following the touchdown, Gunter's defense continued its elite play. Woodville punted the ball back to the Tigers with seven minutes left in the half.
Woodville's Dwayne Koenig came up with a huge sack on 3rd down to force another Tiger Punt. The Eagles took over with 5:28 to go in the 2nd at their own 26-yard line.
The Eagles moved the ball past the midfield stripe on their ensuing drive. However, faced with a 4th and 1 at the 47-yard line, Gunter burst through the line and tackled Woodville for a 3-yard loss. The Tigers took over at the 50 with three minutes to play.
Neither team scored again in the first half. Gunter headed to the locker room with a 7-0 lead.
3rd Quarter
Gunter had another explosive special teams play to start the 2nd half. The Tigers' Mitchell Gage returned the 2nd half kickoff 96 yards for a touchdown. When the Tigers needed a big play, Gage delivered, and Gunter took a 14-0 lead.
Woodville gained a single first down following the kick return TD. However, the Tigers forced another punt. Gunter took over at their own 29-yard line with 9:59 left in the 3rd quarter.
Gunter finally woke up on offense following a Woodville punt. Preston Harpley hit Cash Rumage in stride for a 59-yard touchdown. The Tigers pulled further ahead with less than nine minutes to go in the 3rd quarter, 21-0.
Following the touchdown, Woodville continued to struggle on offense while Gunter entered clock-grinding mode. Woodville had the ball at their 35-yard line as the 3rd quarter ended.
4th Quarter
Gunter added to their total when Brock Boddie picked off Woodville near Gunter's 40-yard line. Boddie returned the interception 60 yards for the touchdown. Gunter went up 28-0 with 6:48 remaining in the 4th quarter.
Woodville threw another interception with 4:23 remaining. The Tigers ran out the rest of the clock and claimed their third straight state championship 28-0
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